Novel
Memorias de un pobre diablo
Not translated into English
Hernán Elizondo Arce · 1964
Synopsis
A narrator, the “poor devil” of the title, recalls rural life in Guanacaste and its social, political and economic miseries, those of people displaced by the latifundio and by progress. The narrative attacks the school, electoral politics and an empty religiosity, and gives a place to La Toña, who disputes the pessimism of the one who tells the story. The author, who had grown up in the province, would later recognise himself in this poor devil.
Context
Awarded a prize in 1963, the book was published in 1964. According to La Nación, it became Editorial Costa Rica's first great commercial success in several years, went through at least eight editions and was translated into German and English. The book's social and existential concerns carry over into the author's later novels, and the National Technical University in Puntarenas has opened a chair devoted to his work.
Who it is for
A novel in Spanish, in the first person, in which the narrator's reflections often interrupt the story.
Prizes and reception
Novel prize at the Juegos Florales in 1963 and national novel prize in 1964; one of its publisher's great commercial successes.